This is an exercise: 375th CES sharpens skills Published Nov. 6, 2008 By Monte Miller 375th Airlift Wing Public Affairs SCOTT AIR FORCE BASE, Ill. -- Last week was a busy one for members of the 375th Airlift Wing Civil Engineer Squadron during their semi-annual field training exercise. About 55 members of the 375th CES spent the week honing their skills in a wide range of areas and even in a few that were a first for Scott. "We were putting our training into action," said 1st Lt. Jeremy Dugan, 375th CES readiness and emergency management flight commander. "We go over basic weapons handling, survival techniques, troop leading, airbase defense, the deployment line and a few other things." A first for the FTX was a land navigation course that tested the participants' senses of direction. Lieutenant Dugan explained the navigation course was spread out more than four miles and consisted of ten checkpoints and seven different adversities to overcome. "It was a big hit and we hope to continue it," Lieutenant Dugan said. "There were four teams of 12 that had to deal with a simulated sniper attack and ambush. They also had to call in an aeromedical evacuation and EOD for the discovery of a simulated improvised explosive device. It was great to have them come in." The FTX also included specialized training taught by other units on base. Individual and team movement techniques were taught by members of the 375th Security Forces Squadron, convoy operations were taught by the 375th Logistics Readiness Squadron and night operations were instructed by the 375th Explosive Ordnance Disposal. Lieutenant Dugan explained this exercise was designed to simulate an Air Force unit arriving in an allied country to deliver humanitarian relief. "We don't use any names of real countries," Lieutenant Dugan said. "Besides that all of the data is real." In an attempt to make the FTX as real as possible, participants prepared bed-down areas with tents, HVAC systems and had to deal with feeding troops in the field and considering the logistics of a force being on the ground for a specific amount of time. Overall, Lieutenant Dugan was very pleased with the exercise and plans to build on the successes not only for the next exercise, but also for the progress of the squadron. "Our squadron commander is very focused on deployment readiness," Lieutenant Dugan said. "We definitely have a lot of lessons learned.